The gangs

Greeley has two major gangs, and police have identified 400 to 500 members in the city and in Evans.

They range in age from early teens to the early 40s. Gang leaders usually don’t want gang members under 16 because they want drivers. Those members older than 25 or 30 are usually called OGs — Original Gangsters.

The OGs are usually the leaders, or shot-callers, bringing the gangs together for haphazard meetings to talk about getting some money, usually by burglaries, drugs or car break-ins.

About 25 subgangs exist in Greeley, usually connected to the southside Surenos or the northside Nortenios. Some others, like the Playboyz, are separate gangs, but the blues and the reds have the power now.

Many of the smaller gang units are “wannabes” — younger kids who aren’t old enough to get into the gang, but wear the colors and follow the gang leaders.

Police say the city also has “pseudo-gangsters,” men or women who want to be aligned with gangs but haven’t actually joined because they don’t want to be “jumped in.”

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Jumping in is a type of initiation into a gang. In some cases, it means a severe beating of the new member by all of the other gangsters; in other cases it means committing a crime to get into the gang.

There was once a “jumping out” ceremony for those leaving a gang, usually another beating by gang members, but police say now that gang members don’t jump out of a gang. “They just become inactive or retire,” Sgt. Keith Olson said.

After five years of inactivity by a gang member, police are required to drop them from the ever-changing police list of gang members.

Olson and the two detectives in his gang unit — Mike Prill and Roy Smith — keep a long list of gang members in Greeley. In a database, they have a list of 400-500 gang members in Greeley, each member’s street name and photos. Each time a new gang member is contacted by a police officer, his name and photo can be added to the list.

Although women were not allowed in gangs in years past, they are now. In many cases, a woman will rent an apartment, which will then be used as a gang gathering place.

Although police are reluctant to say that all the Greeley gangs are Latino, they admit no black gangs or white gangs exist in Greeley. Some gangs have Anglo members, however.

The colors are important identifiers, Olson said. While some gang members may wear bright red or blue colors or solid red or blue shirts and jackets, others are more subtle with colors worn only on bandannas or belts.

While schools are doing a good job keeping the gang colors out, it can be difficult, Olson said.

Bandannas and gang names on shirts are banned in schools. Any gang activity is forbidden, but subtle colors are used so the kids seem to know who is in a gang and who isn’t.

“We have parents who know their kids aren’t in gangs, but they have to be careful not to wear the wrong color to school,” Olson said. “For example, if your kid is attending a school in south Greeley or Evans, the parents know they shouldn’t dress their children in red.”